On average, women globally are paid about 20 per cent less than men, the International Labour (ILO) Organization said on Sunday, International Equal Pay Day.
The United Nations is marking the first ever International Equal Pay Day, on Friday, drawing attention to the gender pay gap – the difference between what a woman earns compared to a man, for work of equal value – and the systemic inequalities it is rooted in.
Gender inequality in the workplace could cost the world an estimated US$12 trillion in global growth over the next decade, according to a 2015 study.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres quoted the staggering figure in his first address to the Commission on the Status of Women which opened in the UN General Assembly Hall on Monday.
CSW, now in its 61st year, helps to shape global standards on gender equality and women’s empowerment.
Dianne Penn reports.
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Women need to earn as much as men for doing the same job.
That was the clear message from the head of the UN’s gender agency, speaking alongside the Canadian Prime Minister at UN headquarters on Wednesday.
Women in most countries earn on average only 60 to 75 per cent of men’s wages, the UN says.